All African Championships, here we come

Four gymnasts of the Walvis Bay Gymnastics Club (WBGC) have qualified for the All African Championships slated for April and May.

Joy-Lana Kabooy will be competing in the rhythmic section of the competition, while Jessica Blaauw, Noa Lofty-Eaton, and Caranè van Zyl will be competing in the tumbling and trampoline section of the continental games.

For Kabooy, Lofty-Eaton, and Van Zyl, this is their shot at qualifying for the Olympics. For Lofty-Eaton and Van Zyl, in their section, only one athlete from Africa, either male or female, can secure a spot at the Olympics.

Kabooy, who has been a gymnast for more than nine years, says she is very excited to be attending the African Championship again.

This is her second time qualifying for the competition, which is set to take place on 25 and 26 April in Rwanda.

“In 2020 in Egypt, I qualified for the finals, and placed fourth overall, but first in Namibia.”

This time around, the goal for Kabooy is to qualify for the Olympics.

“I am working hard to get to where I want to be – the Olympics.”

On the other hand, this is Jessica Blaauw’s first year qualifying for the African Championships, set to take place on 10 and 11 May in Tunisia.

“I am nervous but excited. It was definitely one of my dreams to qualify for the African Championships because I always wanted to travel the world and do trampoline.”

Blaauw stated that her goal at the competition is to reach the finals.

For Lofty-Eaton, this is her second time qualifying for the competition, yet it's her first time attending the competition.

“I qualified in 2020, and just before I had to travel, we were locked down in Namibia due to Covid-19.”

“I am very nervous yet excited. The goal is obviously to qualify for the Olympics.”

Lofty-Eaton and her teammate Van Zyl will be competing against each other for the one spot available for the Olympics.

“We are definitely there for each other; there is definitely a lot of pressure, but you don’t try and think about it; you just want to do the best you can with your scores.”

For teammate Van Zyl, she has been to the African Championships more than once.

“I am excited; it’s a privilege to just qualify for the African Championships. I’ve been training very hard, but also taking care of myself to ensure I am the best I can be.”

For Van Zyl, the end game is also to qualify for the Olympics.

“This is the biggest goal for my gymnastics career, but it won’t end there. Your peak is only at 30, and the possibilities are endless.”

The Namibian team travelling to Rwanda is Peya Kashaka, Faiza Hamutenya, and Kayla Duchaine, who are all seniors. The senior team is Emilia Ekandjo, Joy-Lana Kabooy, Kenandjo Mupia, and Ngatangue Hambeka. The official coaches for this event are Eleonora Karamfilova and Wietsa Snyman.

The trampoline and tumbling national team that have qualified for the upcoming All African Championships are Caranè van Zyl (senior), Noa Lofty-Eaton (senior), Hannah Dunaiski (junior), Jessica Blaauw (junior), and their coach, Mr. Vesko Kostin.

For the artistic gymnasts, the competition is set to take place in Morocco, and the national team is Anne-Leen Thorburn (women’s artistic gymnastics – senior), Immanuel Kooper (men’s artistic gymnastics – senior), Arno Brink (men’s artistic gymnastics – senior), Jone Thornburn (women’s artistic gymnastics – senior), Sureshni Andrews (women’s artistic gymnastics – junior), with Petra Thornburn as coach for the girls and Morihei Anderson as coach for the boys.